Helicopters are used to make land/release of payloads of varying sizes and shapes. Typically, the helicopter carries a sling including, for example, a cable with a hook at one end to attach to a sling load. The sling load can then be externally transported from one location to another.
Sling loads allow even large, bulky cargos such as vehicles to be ferried by the helicopters. To eliminate the need to make numerous trips to ferry a number of payloads or bundles, multiple payload or multiple bundle sling load systems are used. A receiving party can attach a hook or remove a hook from the bundle while it is on the ground. To remove a bundle or payload, either the helicopter must land or the load must be lowered to the ground and manually removed form its hook. In another approach, a multiple bundle sling load system is provided with an automatic release mechanism so that any one or more of the cargo bundles can be released remotely without need for the presence of recovery personnel and the commensurate delay. See U.S. Pat. No. 5,593,113. A further goal is to service multiple payload systems where the individual bundles may be rigged for air drop and then released at altitude to be delivered to the ground under a canopy without preventing the chance for other loads to be delivered via standard sling load delivery.